‘Chicago Fire’ Sylvie Brett & Matthew Casey: Let’s Break It Down
One thing that is sure to always start a lively discussion, debate, and if we are being completely honest a knock-down-drag-out fight is best couples on shows. I happen to enjoy the first two. But, I have unfortunately fallen prey to the last one. I love Chicago Fire. And, after nine seasons, the show has given fans some amazing couples. But. in the last few years, a bit of a controversy has cropped up over the possibility of the potential pairing of Sylvie Brett and Matthew Casey.
Note: This is an opinionated piece, it does not necessarily reflect the views of TV Shows Ace.
Now, given what just happened in Episode 2; I thought it would be fun to take a dive into this couple. Now, please understand, these are my opinions. Everyone has them! And, I am in no way saying anyone is right or wrong for liking their preferred pairing. So, all that being said, let’s have some fun!
One of the problems with past relationships is that there is always some baggage left behind. A person may be really messed up from a past relationship or they always compare new partners to the “perfect” past relationship. Denying our pasts have any bearing on what we do is just ridiculous; which is why we are not going to ignore Sylvie and Matt’s past. We are going to look at them honestly and see how they have affected them.
Let’s Talk About Matt
Okay, so, throughout the series Matt has only had two serious relationships. The first was Hallie. Hallie and Matt were engaged and had been together for eight years prior to the first season. They were a pretty easy-going couple.
But the hiccup was that Hallie did not want children and Matt did. This caused them to break up in Season 1 and Hallie left to work as a doctor in South America. However, at the end of the season, Hallie returns and the two of them begin working on the issues in their relationship. Matt and Hallie appear to be on course for a complete reconciliation. Sadly, Hallie was murdered at the end of Season 1.
After Matt overcomes his grief, he starts dating Gabriella Dawson, and they become a central couple (Dawsey) on the show. Dawson has been in love with Casey for years and though she was never inappropriate, Hallie was aware that Gabby had eyes for Matt She threw vibes at him while they were together. Matt and Gabby went through five seasons of continuous ups and downs. They would be together for a while then Gabby would break up with Matt for various reasons only for them to get back together later.
To be completely honest, none of the reasons Gabby had for initiating the break-ups were good reasons, in my opinion. Not only that, but Gabby always seems to keep Casey on the backburner when they were off. She doesn’t want to be together but doesn’t want him to move on. This stops in Season 5 when Matt and Gabby get married, but after being married only a year Gabby chose to leave Matt for good to be a foreign aid worker.
Sylvie’s turn
Sylvie has a longer dating history. It really seemed like the writers couldn’t find a good match for her. Sylvie came to Chicago because her fiancé, Harrison, broke up with her two weeks before their wedding. Harrison shows up in Chicago after a couple of months and tries to get Sylvie back. We see Harrison belittling Sylvie; making her feel worthless. Thank God, she kicked him to the curb. Sylvie dated Joe Cruz for a while, but she feels dating Cruz is too safe. Ultimately, Sylvie and Cruz remain friends.
Her next relationship is with Antonio Dawson (Gabby’s brother), and it is a hot and fast relationship. They are incredibly attracted to each other and absolutely adorable together. However, Antonio brings his own baggage into their relationship in the form of his ex-wife, Laura. Sylvie takes care of Antonio’s son Diego because he has to go to work suddenly. While she and Diego are hanging out Laura shows up and verbally attacks Sylvie. This causes Sylvie and Antonio to have a fight and break-up because the timing is not right.
Finally, Sylvie dated Kyle, a Chaplin with the CFD. Kyle and Sylvie had a very steady relationship. They were not featured very often in episodes but the general feel of the couple was safe. Kyle breaks up with Sylvie because he believes firefighters wouldn’t open up to him if he is dating their co-worker. But Kyle gets a job offer outside of Chicago and proposes to Sylvie asking her to leave Chicago with him. Sylvie accepts, but she seems conflicted over her decision. Sylvie decides to end their engagement because she is not happy in Indiana and she doesn’t want to give up her career like Kyle was encouraging her to do.
What’s the damage?
Whew! Sylvie, girl, you have dated some good guys. But, it seems to be a recurring theme for these guys to push their expectations on Sylvie. Sylvie has difficulty putting her wants first and because of her past relationships, she has this idea that she is not good enough.
The baggage that Matt carries from his relationships is that both women put their wants, and desires over their relationship. Both Hallie and Dawson walk away from Matt when things don’t go their way. But, Matt stays pretty hung up on both of these women. He has a loyal streak that runs bone-deep.
When did it start?
Matt and Sylvie became friends in Season 7 after Gabby leaves. Neither of them are remotely interested in the other; Sylvie is actually dating Kyle at the time. But as the season goes on, we got to see just how much Matt and Sylvie really have in common. Some things were not obvious before.
They built a mutually supportive and open friendship. Things start to shift for the two of them when a friend outside their firehouse circle tells Sylvie that she and Matt should be the ones dating.
This unbiased look at their relationship causes Sylvie to actually consider the possibility for the first time. She opens up to Stella and Foster and both of them don’t find the idea of Matt and Sylvie dating far-fetched. Neither Matt nor Sylvie really broaches the topic, but over the next few episodes, the two of them share little moments that seem to hint at something more.
What came next
Season 8 is more of the same. Matt and Sylvie continue to be close friends; going to each other when they have an emotional crisis or need a sounding board. Matt encourages Sylvie as she builds a relationship with her birth mother, Julie. He is also the one that is there for her when Julie dies. Sylvie and Matt demonstrate how well they know each other by the little things they do for each other throughout the season.
The moments they share are so tender and caring that the feelings kind of wash over you. Jesse Spencer has also said that he wants the two to take their friendship to the next level. “I would like to see them get together because what they’re building right now is a friendship and it feels organic. They had different situations, but they’re quite similar, and they both have a bit of an ugly past.” These similarities could lead to something amazing for Casey and Brett.
To the Nay-Sayers
There will always be your “never fans”; those that refuse to accept anything other than the couple they want, and I get that. I have a few ships myself that I will plant my flag on and refuse to budge. I will even tell you that I was a Dawsey fan. The passion between Matt and Gabby was electric, and I loved it. I will also say that when Dawsey was good it was great, but when they hit some sand it always turned into an emotional multi-car pileup. There was no in-between with this couple.
Other fans say that it is wrong for Brett and Matt to be together because Brett and Gabby were best friends. But stay with me here, Gabby left Chicago and everyone there. She no longer talks to anyone at the firehouse; she has moved on with her life and essentially created a new life. If Gabby and Matt broke up and Gabby had stayed in Chicago then the argument for girl code would make sense, but Gabby hasn’t been a friend to Sylvie in almost two years. Also, Sylvie never considered Matt as anything more than a friend until almost a year after Gabby left, so how is she being disloyal?
And, just pointing out the obvious Monica Raymond, who plays Gabby, is happy acting in another show and directing. She said Derek Haas almost had to pull teeth to get her to make the appearance she did in Season 8. Now she has said that the door is always open but with her being so reluctant to return why would fans be so desperate to have her back?
Where Could Brettsey Go From Here
Killmer and Spencer gave Brettsey shippers a beautiful, soft kiss that is unrushed and absolutely genuine. Kara Killmer said in an interview that she and Jesse Spencer really talked about how important it was to them to get that scene right.
Kara said, “I know I’ve had scenes like this and I know he’s had scenes like this, [where] there is so much tension, and then the sexual tension just bursts, and people are crashing through doors and losing articles of clothing. Both of us kind of agreed that it’s like — let’s not do that. Let’s let them savor the moment, and let it be more emotional. Not that it wasn’t sexual, just that there was a lot of tender love and care.”
But the moment ends rather abruptly when Brett takes a beat and asks Casey what he would do if Gabby came back to Chicago, and he responds that he did not know. Killmer was proud of Brett for asking this question because it needed to be done. Brett sacrifices so much of what she wanted in past relationships and she needs to start taking care of herself better.
What’s holding her back?
Killmer explains why she believes Brett was scared to admit her feelings for Casey in the first place. “I think in the back of Sylvie’s mind, she’s been overwhelmingly aware of the girl code aspect of everything. And also just, I think that she does deep down just believe, ‘There’s no way that I can compete with Dawson. There’s no way I can… I’ll never measure up to that.’”
It hurts to know that a character feels unworthy, but it says so much about Brett. It speaks to what she has been through. If Casey is really serious about Brett then he will need to prove it in upcoming episodes. I don’t believe we will get a resolution to this couple when Fire comes back in January. But hopefully, they can work through things over the next few episodes.
I am rooting for this couple and would love to see a strong, stable, fun relationship develop between them. Anyway, that is my take on Brettsey. What do y’all think?
[Images Credit: NBC // Screen Grabs from episodes]
- NBC Cancels Two Reality Shows In Programming Shakeup - March 18, 2024
- ‘NCIS’ A Closer Look At Mark Harmon’s Feud With Former Co-Star - March 18, 2024
- ‘TAR’ Rod Gardner’s Net Worth: Does He Need The Money? - March 14, 2024